


The Other Pilot

by AliciaSinCiudad



Series: Tumblr-prompt stand-alones [11]
Category: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)
Genre: Earth AU, Grad School AU, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-22
Updated: 2017-10-22
Packaged: 2019-01-21 04:05:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,457
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12449316
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AliciaSinCiudad/pseuds/AliciaSinCiudad
Summary: Doctor Erso tries to get his PhD advisee, Bodhi Rook, to actually get out of the house for once. And maybe meet a cute pilot while he's at it.For the Sniperpilot Halloween challenge.





	The Other Pilot

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you to WritinRedhead for beta'ing! <3

“Why did I let you rope me into this again?” Bodhi grumbled as he and his academic advisor made their way to Professor Mothma’s house.

“Because you’re going to burn out if you don’t get out every once in a while. And in a college town, your options were this, or an undergrad party.”

Bodhi grimaced at the idea of drunken undergrads. He was too old for that, thank you very much. At least it would be relatively quiet, and Professor Mothma was likely to serve some decent food.

“Also, there is someone I’d like for you to meet.”

Bodhi shook his head. “So you think I need to get out more, but you’re making me come here to meet another grad student?”

“Oh, he’s not a grad student.”

Bodhi blinked. “He’s not a professor, is he?”

“No, he’s not a professor, either. That is, not anymore…”

Bodhi gave his academic advisor a terrified look. “Doctor Erso, just how old is this man you’re setting me up with?”

Galen laughed. “Bodhi, I am not _setting you up_ with anyone. I just want you to meet this man. His name’s Guerrera, maybe you’ve heard of him. Anyway, I think you’d have a lot in common, and I _know_ he’d be interested in your recent findings on illegal use of kyber crystals. On the other hand… in terms of setting you up… there _is_ this old student of mine…”

“No. Please. Do not set me up. I am hardly handling grad school, I can definitely not handle a failed relationship too.”

“Failed? Bodhi, you’re such a pessimist.”

“I prefer the term _realist_.”

“Of course you do. Everyone does. My daughter, she would have set you straight. She was always full of hope, full of determination…”

“Like her dad?”

“Like her mom.” Galen sighed. “But tonight is not the night to mourn. It’s the night to relax, have fun, maybe make some academic connections, maybe meet a cute alumnus. What are your thoughts on mustaches? He always used to have a mustache.”

“The former professor or the former student?”

“The former student.”

“In that case, I hate mustaches. Doctor Erso. Please. I’ll meet your ex professor, but I’m begging you, don’t let my romantic life become even more pathetic.”

Galen just laughed and shook his head, leading Bodhi inside.

 

 

Ten minutes, and two glasses of wine, later, Bodhi had managed to avoid talking to anyone, familiar or new. He knew this streak was coming to an end, though, as he saw Galen approach.

“Good to see you circulating,” he said sardonically. Bodhi just raised an eyebrow. “Anyway, I just noticed an email from a _certain_ former student of mine. He has informed me that he will be arriving wearing a pilot uniform. Much like your costume, as a matter of fact. In his case, though, it’s very lazy, because it is not actually a costume. It’s his own uniform.”

“This is not at all related to your encouraging me to dress as a pilot, is it?”

“Mere coincidence. Anyway. Keep an eye out. Tall, rather lanky, wearing pilot gear and a mustache. Dark hair. Glint in his eyes.”

“Are you sure _you_ aren’t interested in him?”

“Please. I would never sleep with a former student.”

Bodhi choked on his wine. “Who said anything about sleeping with anyone? I… er… you do know I’m Ace, right?”

“I did not know that,” Galen commented. “This makes it all the more important you actually socialize. If you’re not having casual sex to relieve stress –”

“How many drinks have you had, Doctor?” Bodhi interrupted, before Galen could say anything even worse.

“Not enough. I, however, have been balancing drinks with food. I can’t help noticing that you have not been doing the same.”

“I’m not hungry,” Bodhi muttered.

Galen shook his head. “I’m serious. You may not be drunk yet, but there’s no way I’m letting you drink wine on an empty stomach. You are bringing out the father in me…” Galen got a far away look, as he always did when he mentioned his family. His deceased wife, and his estranged daughter, run away from a foster home before Galen had been able to reconnect with her.

“Ok, _Dad_ , I’ll have some food. Can’t be any worse than what I’d be cooking on a grad student budget.”

“Good, good.” Galen was still smiling a little absently. “You know, you’d be about the same age as my daughter. She was named Jyn, but I always called her Stardust.”

Bodhi had heard the story many times, but he wasn’t about to interrupt his advisor. For one thing, it seemed a bit heartless. For another, it meant Galen wasn’t trying to set him up with the mustachioed pilot.

It turned out, Bodhi was not the only one listening to this story. They were suddenly interrupted by a petite young woman, around Bodhi’s age, with an unreadable mix of emotions on her face.

“Papa?”

Now it was Galen who choked on his drink. “Stardust?” he asked, tears forming in his eyes.

“Oh Papa, Papa! I can’t believe it’s you! This isn’t some Halloween prank is it? After all these years, I thought you were dead…”

Galen cut her off with something between a hug and a tackle. “It’s me, Stardust. Your Papa. I always hoped you were still alive somewhere, doing well. I never stopped thinking of you, my dear, never.”

“I’d heard a rumor you were living here, I had to come see for myself. But I never thought I’d find you here, at this party…”

Bodhi realized how rude he was being, staring at this unexpected family reunion. He quietly backed away.

Right into someone.

He turned around, already starting to apologize to the… the pilot. The tall, rather lanky, pilot. With dark hair. And a mustache.

Oh dear.

“Nice costume,” the rather lanky man commented. “It suits you.”

“It should. Before I came to grad school, I was actually studying to be a pilot. Flunked out, though.” Bodhi swallowed. Why was he saying all this? He really should have had some food with his wine.

“Is that so? It’s too bad. I can definitely see you behind the controls of an airplane.”

“Well, I _have_ been behind the controls. I’m fine when I’m just flying. But I always get flustered during the simulations. Stupid, isn’t it?”

“I don’t think so. Anyway, it’s better this way than the other way around, no?” The rather lanky pilot smiled. He had a nice smile.

Bodhi definitely needed some food to balance the wine. The room was starting to spin just the slightest bit. He wanted to chalk it up to the rather lanky… oh Lord, that phrase was stuck in his head for good… pilot, but the slight blurriness of his vision told him otherwise. “Um,” he said eloquently.

“Hold on,” the… something other than lanky… pilot said. “You’re _the_ pilot, aren’t you? The one everyone’s been talking about?”

“Um?” Bodhi asked, equally eloquently.

“Oh. Er. When’s the last time you had something to eat?”

“Um.” Bodhi closed his eyes. “Definitely some time today.”

“Let’s have some overly-fancy hors d’oeuvres, shall we?”

Bodhi nodded. He didn’t think he could get away with another _um_ , but he couldn’t think of anything else to say.

Several tiny morsels later, Bodhi was feeling slightly more cogent. “Wait. What do you mean by _the_ pilot?”

“You work with Doctor Erso, right? They say you have some very important research, that would be dangerous in the wrong hands, but which could bring about real positive change in the right hands.”

“You think? Doctor Erso is always telling me to be careful where I publish my results. He was telling me about this old colleague of his, Guerrera…”

“No. No, that is not the right hands. He… Well… Let’s just say he experimented a little bit too much with his own research. On illegal substances. Best to steer clear if possible. Professor Mothma, however, she will know what to do with your research.”

“Oh. Ok.”

“But it’s a Friday night, and we shouldn’t be talking academics.”

“Honestly, it’s better than trying to socialize here. There’s so many people here, it’s a little overwhelming.”

“What do you say we go for a walk in Massassi Park, over on Yavin and 4th?”

“Sure, sounds good. I’ll go grab my jacket.”

On their way to the coat room, three different people commented on the two’s matching costumes. Bodhi blushed furiously, but the… _tall_ man just took it in stride.

In the coatroom, Bodhi couldn’t for the life of him find his jacket. That’s what he got for bringing the same black peacoat every grad student seemed to own. The other man, however, found three of his jackets, as well as a vest. “I guess I keep forgetting them here,” he commented.

“Come here often?”

“Professor Mothma and I have worked together on many projects. So, which one do you want? Brown, blue, or black?”

Bodhi considered. The blue coat with the fluffy hood looked incredibly warm and comfortable. But he shouldn’t ask for the nicest one, that would be ungrateful. On the other hand, it upped the chances of the other man wearing the black leather jacket, which Bodhi would not mind…

“Here, take this one.” The man handed Bodhi the blue coat. “I can see you’re eyeing it.”

“Oh, but it’s yours, and it’s chilly out…”

“All the more reason for you to borrow it. I’ll be fine, I can layer.” He ended up taking the brown jacket and the navy vest. “I like wearing the vest at night, anyway. The reflective patch makes me feel like I’m slightly less likely to be hit by a car.”

“Thanks, um…” What was he supposed to call this guy? ‘Lanky pilot’? ‘Guy I’m unexpectedly ok with my advisor setting me up with’? ‘Bro’?

“Oh! I never told you my name! I’m sorry, I guess I was a little distracted.” The man blushed. “Not every day I discover the man I’ve been looking for is so, er, charming.” The blush deepened. “Anyway, I’m Cassian.”

“Bodhi. Nice to meet you.” He shook his head. “You already knew my name. Sorry.”

Cassian clapped a hand on Bodhi’s shoulder. “I like the blue coat on you. It suits you. Let’s go.”

 

 

Massassi Park was not far away, but Bodhi had never been there before. He’d heard about it, the leafy-green-ness of it, the geometric-looking architectural structures. He supposed there was more to appreciate in the daytime, but it was pleasant enough at night. Also, night-time was chillier, which meant a) borrowing the fluffiest coat in the galaxy (which just so happened to smell like Mr Lanky Mustache Man), and b) fake-shivering every once in a while so Cassian would hug him. (Bodhi was not usually this shameless. But the handful of hors d’oeuvres he’d eaten did little to counteract two full glasses of wine.)

The walk was pleasant. Bodhi talked about his research, about grad school in general, about his family, about flying… about a lot of things. Bodhi was chatty on a good day, and… well, it’s not that this wasn’t a good day. It’s just that it was a little more wine-filled than usual.

Cassian did not talk much. He was more of a listener. He had those eyes which seemed to say _Tell me more,_ and _I’m listening_ , and _You’re not annoying the hell out of me by talking too much, I am actually enjoying this, or at least feeling neutrally._ At least, that’s what Bodhi had managed to convince himself.

Finally, the one-sided-ness of the conversation got to be too much for Bodhi, and he began to ask questions. Cassian responded minimally. Not rudely. Just, less openly than Bodhi. Finally, Bodhi asked him what class he’d taken with Doctor Erso.

“Class? Oh, I’m not a student.”

“You didn’t used to be Doctor Erso’s student, though?”

“No, I only know him through reputation. I was supposed to find him tonight, actually, to talk about a research project he’s been working on. But I got a little… distracted.” It was hard to tell in the moonlight, but Bodhi was pretty sure Cassian blushed again.

“Wait, you didn’t have a class with Doctor Erso? He told me I should meet you… At least, I think he did. He never mentioned a name, but how many tall, lanky pilots with mustaches could there be at one party?”

“I certainly wasn’t the only pilot with a mustache, although I don’t know if I can call you tall.”

Bodhi rolled his eyes. “Well, that rules out Erso trying to set me up with myself. I wonder who he wanted me to meet, anyway?” He checked his phone, and saw a series of new text messages from his advisor.

_Sorry to disappear on you like that._

_I met my daughter! You must meet her! She is wonderful._

_I am not setting you up with my daughter._

_I didn’t see you leave, but I think you missed Biggs._

_The ex-grad-student._

_Still has a mustache._

_He ran into his old high-school-buddy, Luke, and ghosted._

_Am I using ‘ghosted’ correctly?_

_It’s Halloween, we are all ghosts!_

_I have had a few wines of glass._

_AND I MET MY DAUGHTER!_

_Have some food. Don’t get a hangover._

_Revisions on thesis due Tuesday._

Bodhi laughed. “I guess there _were_ multiple lanky mustachioed pilots after all. I narrowly avoided getting set up with someone named Biggs. But we should definitely go back to the party.”

“Oh, are you cold?”

“No, I just want to see my academic advisor drunk.”

Cassian shrugged. “I _was_ told to make contact with him. And maybe if he’s drunk enough, he can be poached more easily.”

“Poached? I thought you just wanted to talk with him about a project. Are you going to kill Doctor Erso?”

“No, no, academic poaching. We want him to join the faculty at Alliance University. The Imperial Academy may pay better, but we are doing more for the community. We could use an engineer like him.”

“If you poach him, I’m screwed. He’s my academic advisor, and I’m less than a year away from graduating!”

“I suppose you’ll have to transfer as well. I think we could find a place for an almost-PhD with access to important data, and eyes that light up a room.”

“My eyes light up a room?”

“Or, um, a park. Crap, I’m no good at flirting.”

“It’s fine, neither am I. Now let’s get back before Erso sobers up. Set your guns to ‘poach.’ And I will set my phone to ‘embarrassing Instagram photos.’ And to think I almost didn’t come…”

“And to think I almost lost you to someone with an inferior mustache…”

 

FIN

**Author's Note:**

> From the prompts for Day Three: Mistaken Identity  
> 1) You’re wearing the same costume as my real blind date.
> 
> With a side of Day Ten: Parties  
> 1) You don’t understand why I’ve suddenly decided we’re going to a party together but you’re not complaining.  
> 2) Accidentally showed up to a party in coordinating costumes, now everyone thinks you’re my date. (For about half a sentence.)


End file.
